DA wants to expand truancy program into Morgan County, Hartselle schools

For the Enquirer

After beginning an initiative to curb truancy in Decatur City Schools last school year, the Morgan County District Attorney’s Office wants to introduce the same program to Morgan County Schools this school year because of the program’s success in getting students back in the classroom.

The Helping Families Initiative, or HFI, works with 23 local agencies and organizations, and District Attorney Scott Anderson said he modeled the program after a similar initiative introduced by the Mobile County District Attorney’s Office in 2003 that has been successful.

After introducing the program to Decatur City Schools last year, Anderson had some success stories to share with the Morgan County school board.

“We had an honor student, who all of a sudden, her grades just plummeted,” Anderson said. “She got in trouble, she got suspended and so she was referred to us. Her mother was deceased, her dad worked and … he could not get her to go to school.” Anderson said his team was able to get the young woman into therapy, where she was diagnosed with an eating disorder. After addressing this, the Morgan County HFI team began to help her catch up on schoolwork.

“A very bright young lady,” Anderson said. “She finished an entire semester in one subject in a weekend. They thought she was cheating, but she was very intelligent.” The team did not stop there. After discussing her favorite extracurricular activities with them, the team told her she could begin a career from her hobbies and they are helping her apply to college.

Anderson also told a story of a female Decatur student who was raped and gave birth to the child. Her mother would not allow her to go back to school.

“She was working and raising that child,” Anderson said. “We found out about it and decided that she needs to be in school. She was on a third grade reading level and she was 17.” The HFI team connected her with the Decatur City Head Start preschool program, which is now watching her child during the day so she can take adult education courses.

“She’s thriving,” Anderson said of the student.

Anderson said the HFI program is voluntary, and parents do not have to participate.

Anderson also told the Morgan County school board how the Mobile HFI program helped get a student get back into school regularly and improved his behavioral issues.

“There was a little boy in the fourth grade that stood up on his desk and threatened to shoot the teacher and everyone in the classroom,” Anderson said. “They sunk their teeth into him and did a home study and found out there was no mother and no father in the house and he was being raised by his grandmother.” Workers from the Mobile HFI noticed the house hold had no washer or dryer and local businesses who partnered with the organization donated a washer, and Anderson said a local church built a clothesline for the family in their backyard.

“They were also able to get him some new clothes because he was coming to school in dirty, mismatched clothes and he was able to see a doctor who diagnosed him as being psychotic and gave him some medication,” Anderson said. “Before HFI, what they would have done was suspend that young man and send him back home where the problem exists. Problems don’t get fixed where they usually exist.” Anderson said after the program’s intervention, the boy became a well-behaved, productive student in school.

Morgan County Superintendent Tracie Turrentine told the school board she will be recommending a memorandum of understanding to them regarding HFI at the next meeting on Sept. 5.

Anderson told the board that DCS invested $40,000 in the program.

Decatur Superintendent Michael Douglas said he believes Anderson’s program has been successful and it comes at a crucial time when a school’s attendance rate can impact its grade on the state report card.

“I can’t make a kid get up and come to school, but I’m graded for it if they (don’t) come to school,” Douglas said. “So, essentially, it’s on the parent to really get those kids in school.” Douglas said looking at data on individual students who are struggling in school who do not have special needs, it is “usually an attendance or poverty issue or they’ve always been behind.” “It’s helped with some tru-ancy issues,” Douglas said of Anderson’s program. “If a kid is in poverty and they’re behind and I’m trying to catch them up, I can’t catch you up if you’re not in school.” Once a student reaches three unexcused absences, the school district will provide Anderson’s office with the student’s name, their guardians and their address. His office will send a letter to the student’s address to offer assistance and remind the guardians of their obligation to make sure their child is attending school.

After the fifth unexcused absence, the student will go to court and their parents are subject to being prosecuted for truancy by a juvenile court judge.

Anderson spoke to the Hartselle City School board during a work session Aug. 15 about the HFI program. Superintendent Dr. Brian Clayton said the board is considering joining the program, adding the investment of $15,000 is well worth the cost if it helps one Hartselle student.